憧れの水俣／福田大作

僕は水俣のとなりまち津奈木町出身である。その町の小さな漁村集落で、ちりめん漁を営む漁家の長男として誕生した。私の出身集落がもうひとつのとなりまち芦北町との境にあることから、日常的な買い物場所は芦北町だった。でも特別に“メーカー品”の服を購入するときや、おやじの背広を買うときなどは決まって「水光社」のある水俣市へ出かけた。そして昼食は水光社の食堂でちゃんぽんとソフトクリーム（今はカツ丼がレギュラーだ）。人口五千人にも満たない小さなとなりまちにとって、水俣は憧れの地だったし、ちょっとだけ背伸びをして出かける町だった。

I am from Tsunagi, a neighboring township of Minamata. I was born in a small fishing village in the township, the eldest son of a fisherman who ran a crape fishery. Because my home village was located between Ashikita Township and Minamata, we did our daily shopping in Ashikita. But whenever we needed to buy a special brand of clothes or a suit for our father, we went to Minamata City, where Suikosha (the Minamata’s local department store) was located. And for lunch, we ate chanpon(noodle, one of Minamata’s specialties) and soft-serve ice cream at Suikosha’s cafeteria (now we always have Katsudon in the same cafeteria). Our town, Tsunagi, was a small town with a population of less than 5,000 people, so Minamata was a place I longed to visit, and it was a town where I “need to stretch myself” a little bit.

いつの日か大人になって僕は地元の町役場に就職した。時折、水俣を横目で見ながら、日々の業務に取り組んだ。そして１５年ほどが過ぎ、僕はいよいよ水俣に関わり始める。水俣・芦北地域全体で新産業を創造するプロジェクトチームに入ることになったのだ。県と市町から職員１名ずつが参加し、持続可能な小さなビジネスを同時多発的に生み出すための仕掛けをはじめる。このプロジェクトによって、ようやく水俣が、僕にとってぐっと近い存在になった。僕はここぞとばかりに高校の同級生や若手農家など、強烈な個性で水俣をかき混ぜる人たちとの交流を始める。みんな賢くてしっかりした主張を持っていて、田舎もんの僕はいつも緊張していたし、照れるし、面倒臭いし、暑苦しかった。でもそれでもやっぱりかっこいいんだよな。

「なんやねん、水俣。」

Later, when I became an adult, I took a job at the local town hall. From time to time, I would go about my daily work while looking at Minamata from the side. After 15 years, I finally started to get involved in Minamata. I was assigned to a project team to create a new industry in the broader Minamata and Ashikita area, including Tsunagi. One official from each of Kumamoto Prefecture, Ashikita, Tsunagi, and Minamata were assigned to the project. We started to set up a mechanism to create many sustainable small businesses. Thanks to this project, Minamata finally became a lot closer to me. I took the opportunity to interact with my high school classmates, young farmers, and other people with strong personalities who were taking leadership roles in the city of Minamata. They were all smart and firm and assertive, and I was always nervous, embarrassed, cumbersome, and hot-tempered when I worked with them. But even so, I felt they were very cool.

I thought to myself, “Why is Minamata so cool?”

やっぱり水俣は、僕が子どものころ思い描いていたものと同じものだった。きっとその根っこにあるのは水俣の哲学であり、水俣病を教訓とした愛と学びと祈りである。ある日、水俣の若者は言った。「水俣は世界を変える力を持っている。」大げさではなくきっとそうだと思う。水俣が背負ってきた経済成長の負の部分と、そこから生み出された希望を包括した「新しいモノサシ」がこれからの新たなスタンダードとなり、この混沌の中にあって希望を生み出し続けることができるエンジンになると、僕は信じている。

Minamata was the same as I had imagined it to be when I was a child. Its roots must be in the philosophy of Minamata, and in love, learning, and prayer based on the lessons of Minamata disease. One day, a young man from Minamata said, “Minamata has the power to change the world.” I don’t exaggerate, but I believe he was right. I believe that the “New Standard of Values” created by Minamata’s experience with the negative aspects of economic growth in the form of pollution will become the new standard for the future. I believe that Minamata will become an engine that can continue to generate hope in the midst of this chaos.

Writer　Daisaku Fukuda
ライター／福田　大作
津奈木町役場職員　津奈木町出身　漁師の息子　元陸上競技短距離選手（体育大学卒）
昭和５０年さびしがり屋のうさぎ年生まれでおうし座
Workeing at Tsunagi Town Hall.
Born in Tsunagi Town, son of a fisherman.
Used to be a  track and field short distance athlete (graduated from the University of Physical Education)
Born in 1975,  in the Year of the Rabbit, Taurus. Love to be with other people.